Morecambe trio touch and go ahead of Northampton trip

Adam Lord

Morecambe boss Jim Bentley is to assess a number of players ahead of his side’s trip to Northampton on Saturday.

The game is likely to come too soon for Aaron McGowan who continues his recovery from a hamstring problem but Aaron Wildig, hamstring, Tom Barkhuizen, ribs, and Shaun Beeley, ankle, could all come into contention as The Shrimps look to upset the high-flying Cobblers.

Bentley said: “Aaron McGowan’s making good progress but it’s probably too early for him.

“Wildig, Barkhuizen and Shaun Beeley are making good progress so we’ll just have to see how they are.

“They’re not medium term they’re only short term and we’re going to need them back because we’ve got a very busy period coming up where we’ll need bodies.”

With captain Peter Murphy out for the season with a cruciate knee ligament injury Bentley’s squad is depleted.

New arrivals ahead of the trip south on Saturday are unlikely but The Shrimps have been boosted by a return to their Morecambe High School training ground on Thursday.

Bentley said: “It’s the first time we’ll train on grass today (Thursday) in about six or seven weeks given the rain we’ve had and even the snow the other day.

“It’s nice because recently the group has been split. Some have been in the gym, some have been on the side of the pitch and some have been on astroturf.

“It’s very difficult to manage and today’s the day we’ll get back on grass and hopefully the rain will stay away and we can do the same tomorrow.

“It’s not ideal, it’s not perfect but it’s key that we get the group back together and it should give us a real boost.”